Day two of the 2022 World Lacrosse Women’s Championship featured 20 teams in 10 games of action.
Three headlines:
England made a statement in the lone Pool A game of the day with a 12-4 win over Australia in a rematch of the 2017 bronze medal game. Megan Whittle scored five goals and added four draw controls.
Germany secured the result of the day with an 10-7 upset over seventh-seeded Wales. Kim Dressendörfer totaled four goals, two assists and seven draw controls.
New Zealand held off a feisty Ireland team for a 10-8 win. New Zealand outshot the Irish 30-16 but had to contend with a standout performance from goalkeeper Emily Gaven, who made a tournament-high 11 saves.
Three more stars:
Mexico’s attacker Isabel Szejk exploded for seven goals on just nine shots in an 18-6 win over Sweden.
Isabelle Martire turned in a gem with six goals and two assists to help the Czech Republic overturn a second half deficit in a 13-10 win over Italy.
Lindsey McKone helped Israel dispatch Korea, 18-6, with four goals, two assists, and 10 draw controls.
A match-by-match recap of the day can be found below.
Mexico opened the action on Thursday with a resounding 18-6 win over Sweden. Attacker Isabel Szejk exploded for seven goals on just nine shots. The duo of Mexico goalkeepers Zoe Ochoa and Isabella McCullough each made six saves to combine for the highest number of saves by a team so far in the tournament.
Midfielder Daniela Eppler Lobato added three goals, an assist and four draw controls for Mexico.
The Czech Republic overcame a second half deficit to secure a 13-10 win over Italy in their opener. Isabelle Martire, the MVP of the European Cup, turned in a gem with six goals and two assists, including the goals to tie the game and take the lead in the third quarter after the Czechs trailed 8-6.
Colleen Owen of Italy scored five goals on 10 shots. The Italians could not capitalize on a 20-7 advantage in draw controls, keyed by Stephanie Colson, whose 10 draw controls are tied for the most in the tournament.
China was propelled to a 13-7 win over Switzerland thanks to a dual effort from Hanna Bond, and Shannon Brazier, who both scored five goals while Brazier added three assists. China is the only team with two players scoring five or more goals in the same game.
China limited the Swiss to a tournament-low 11 shots with a proactive defense that only allowed six of 13 possible clears.
Puerto Rico made their women’s world championship debut with a splash, defeating the Netherlands 14-3. Puerto Rico spread the offense across four players with multiple goals, as Delaney Rodriguez-Shaw led the way with a hat trick.
Puerto’s Rico’s defense had its way with the Netherlands, allowing just three goals on 13 shots.
Japan earned a hard-fought 13-8 win over the Haudenosaunee in their opener. Mio Takahashi and Kokoro Nakazawa both scored a hat trick, while Risa Suzuki notched three assists, tied for the second-most in a game so far.
Miya Scanlan notched a hat trick for the Haudenosaunee on four shots.
Hong Kong stymied Spain with an impressive defensive performance in a 12-1 win. Hong Kong set tournament-bests with one goal allowed, 13 shots allowed and 21 ground balls. Michelle Yu added four goals for Hong Kong.
New Zealand hung on for a 10-8 win in a tense battle against a fierce Irish squad. New Zealand was boosted by a 16-2 advantage in ground balls and was able to dominate the shot count, 30-16. Briar Bertram scored three goals and collected four ground balls while Sarah Butler totaled four goals.
Goalkeeper Emily Gaven made 11 saves, the most so far in the tournament, to keep the game within arm’s reach for Ireland.
Israel opened its campaign with a bang, defeating Korea 18-6. Lindsey McKone turned in one of the performances of the day with four goals, two assists, and 10 draw controls, tied for the most in the tournament. Ali Zoe Martin and Zoe Martin added hat tricks of their own as Israel was one of two teams, along with USA, to have three players record three or more goals in the same game.
Israel doubled Korea in shots, 30-15, thanks in part to an 18-10 advantage in draw controls.
Germany made waves with the result of the day, upsetting Wales 10-7. On paper, Wales was the seventh seed and Germany was the 14th seed based on their results at the 2017 world championship. At the 2019 European Championship, Wales defeated Germany 18-5.
The Germans secured the win with a balanced effort on both sides of the ball. The defense held Wales to just six goals from 14 shots on goal on 21 total shots while Goalkeeper Luisa Beck made six saves. Kim Dressendörfer delivered with four goals, two assists and seven draw controls while Jennifer Markey added three goals of her own.
England concluded the day with a 12-4 win over Australia in a rematch of the 2017 bronze medal match. England was in control from start to finish, and dominated the draw controls 14-6.
Megan Whittle was superb for England with five goals on seven shots along with four draw controls. Olivia Wimpenny added five draw controls. Defender Emily Nalls chipped in with three ground balls and two caused turnovers.
Schedule for Friday, July 1
All of Thursday’s games will be carried in the United States on ESPN+
9 a.m. – Italy vs. Sweden, Lower Field
10 a.m. –Ireland vs. Spain, Tiger Field
11 a.m. – New Zealand vs. Austria, Unitas Stadium
12 p.m. – Czech Republic vs. Colombia, Lower Field
1 p.m. – Haudenosaunee vs. China, Tiger Field
2 p.m. – Germany vs. Latvia, Unitas Stadium
3 p.m. – Japan vs. Argentina, Lower Field
4 p.m. – Israel vs. Norway, Tiger Field
5 p.m – Australia vs. Canada, Unitas Stadium
6 p.m. – Korea vs. Puerto Rico, Lower Field
7 p.m. – Wales vs. Jamaica, Tiger Field
8 p.m. – USA vs. Scotland, Unitas Stadium
